Chapter 106: Packing out lives in Boxes

"I should let you get some rest. You have a lot of packing and preparation ahead of you this weekend. Please let me know if you will be needing any of my assistance" he said.

Selen stood up as well, walking him toward the living room doorway.

"Thank you," she said to him. "Always, Selen," he said, looking down at her with a quiet intensity. He did not try to touch her or push the boundary she had just explicitly drawn.

He simply offered a reassuring smile. "Safe travels next week. I will see you and the kids before you all leave" he said. She nodded and he walked out of the living room and the house.

As the front door closed behind him, Selen stood in the quiet hallway and took a deep, centering breath. Her choice was made. Newton was her partner, representing the predictability and steady presence she desperately craved, even with an ocean between them for the next six months.

Meanwhile, Clancy was returning to his empire, content with the mere fact that they would soon share the same sky. Turning around, she headed upstairs toward the kids’ playroom.

***That evening, in Clancy’s suite***

Clancy stood by the glass window of his suite, watching the city lights shine brightly in the darkness of the night. The penthouse was dead silent, filled with only the hum of the air conditioning and ticking of the wall clock.

In his hand, a crystal filled with scotch remained untouched, the ice completely melted into the liquid. His thoughts were trapped in the living room he had walked out of, repeating the exact look in Selen’s eyes when she drew her line in the sand.

He pulled his phone from his pants pocket and hit the speed dial. Patrick answered on the very first ring, his voice crisp and entirely awake despite the midnight hour. "Yes, Mr. Avelino," he said.

"I need the flight manifests updated, Patrick," Clancy said, his voice dropping into that familiar, quiet authority that left absolutely no room for debate.

"We are cutting our trip short. Have the private jet prepared for our departure by the following Friday morning. We are heading back to London." he said. He had also made his own decision.

The entire point of him being in Spain was because of Selen and the kids. So what was he still going to spend weeks doing there after they already left?

On the other side of the line, Patrick silently let out a breath he felt like he had been holding for three months. A genuine sense of relief washed over him.

For weeks, he had watched his boss compromise his global schedule, delay multi-million dollar board meetings, and manage an international corporate empire from a temporary hotel desk, all to stay within physical reach of his family.

Patrick respected Selen, but he respected Clancy more, and watching Clancy linger in this emotional limbo had been exhausting.

"Right away, sir," Patrick replied, keeping his professional tone perfectly intact. "I will notify the flight crew immediately and ensure the hangar has everything coordinated. Shall I inform the London executives to schedule the standard briefing for the following Monday afternoon?" he asked.

"Yes. Do that," Clancy said, turning slowly away from the window to pace the suite. "But there is a secondary priority you need to handle personally. Selen and the children are relocating next week. They will be staying within the London estate perimeter for the duration of her six month transition." he announced.

Patrick’s hand tightened slightly around his pen. "So, she is actually going back, sir?" he asked, shock evident in his tone. He never believed that she would want to step foot in London again after everything.

"She is," Clancy answered. Patrick smiled to himself in the dark of his own room, thoroughly glad that Selen was finally returning.

With her back in London, Clancy would no longer be a distracted man chasing a ghost across continents, he would be back at the absolute head of the company, sharp, ruthless, and fully focused. It meant the endless waiting game was over, and the playing field was returning to solid ground.

"That is excellent news, Mr. Clancy. I will oversee the logistics myself to make sure her transition is entirely flawless. Your presence back in the main office is precisely what the firm requires to stabilize the Q4 projections." Patrick said.

"I want her move handled with absolute discretion," Clancy continued, ignoring the corporate commentary entirely. "Secure her exact travel itinerary from the relocation agency that her ministry is working with.

If there are any delays with the container shipping, any issues with the customs clearance for their personal items, or any complications with the children’s private school enrollment forms, you fix it before it ever reaches her desk." He said.

"She must never know the assistance came from my office. She wants her independence, and I intend to let her believe she has it." he added.

"Consider it done, sir. I will ensure that everything is completely seamless and entirely invisible," Patrick said.

Clancy ended the call without another word, tossing the phone onto the sofa. He thought about Selen’s words from the previous night about choosing Newton knowing exactly what Newton represented to her, he was the comfortable, low-risk man who would help her pack the cardboard boxes, carry the luggage to the terminal, and offer a polite, safe kiss on the cheek before she boarded the plane.

And while Newton remained thousands of miles behind, partner Clancy would be right there in the same city, breathing the same cool London air, watching over her from the shadows of his empire.

Safety would keep her comfortable for a month or two, but eventually, the quiet intensity of what they truly shared would pull her back... that was his belief.

To him, the competition had been pushed farther away from the battle grounds.

"We have something special, she just needs to let herself feel it," he said. Totally ignorant of Selen and Newton’s new official relationship.